1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to teledata communications and particularly to industry-standard RJ-type jacks and mating modular plugs commonly used in such systems.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Industry standard RJ-type jacks for receiving mating modular plugs have become extremely common and are now found in virtually every telecommunications and data communications system worldwide, providing wire connections for a vast array of communication devices. Thus, the RJ-11 connector comprises a six-contact plug and corresponding jack commonly used to connect a communications device such as a telephone, facsimile machine or modem to a telephone line. The RJ-45 connector, which is somewhat wider than the RJ-11 connector and includes eight contacts, is commonly used for Ethernet local area network (LAN) connections.
RJ-11 and RJ-45 receptacles are often found proximate one another, for example, as side-by-side wall jacks in office or other commercial or industrial environments, on computers, on adapters, and on PC Cards such as the Xircom RealPort(trademark) integrated Type III PC Card with built-in side-by-side RJ-11 and RJ-45 receptacles allowing a user to plug standard network and modem cables directly into the card. See: U.S. Pat. No. 5,773,332 issued Jun. 30, 1998; U.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/971,501 filed Nov. 17, 1997now U.S. Pat. No. 5,984,731 issued Nov. 16, 1999; and U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/676,143 filed Mar. 25, 1998, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,116,962 issued Sep. 12, 2000, said patents being incorporated herein by reference in their entireties.
Detailed information regarding the RJ-type or series connectors, including their dimensions, are contained in the U.S. government publication found at Title 47 (Telecommunication), Code of Federal Regulations, Chapter I (Federal Communications Commission), Part 68 (Connection Of Terminal Equipment To The Telephone Network), Subpart F (Connectors), Section 68.500 (Specifications) (rev. Oct. 1, 1998). This publication is accessible at http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/waisidxxe2x80x9498/47cfr68xe2x80x9498.html and is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.
An RJ-series plug includes a generally rectangular contact body or block including uniformly spaced apart grooves into which electrical contact pins are recessed. As indicated, the RJ-11 plug has six such grooves, while the RJ-45 has eight. The RJ-11 and RJ-45 plugs further have standardized retention tabs and tab bases having the same width. The height and other physical characteristics are also the same for both plugs. The spacing between the contacts on the RJ-11 and the RJ-45 modular plugs are identical so that, given the other identical dimensions of these plugs, it is possible to inadvertently insert an RJ-11 plug into a larger RJ-45 jack. As a result, the RJ-11 plug can damage the contact wires inside the RJ-45 jack, especially those contact wires at the outermost contact positions, Nos. 1 and 8. In addition, with an RJ-11 plug connected to a telephone line, the high voltage ring signal could damage a LAN circuit.
In accordance with one specific, exemplary embodiment of the invention, there is provided a receptacle sized and configured to receive an RJ-45 standard modular plug having a plurality of longitudinally extending contact pin grooves including an outermost groove. The receptacle is defined by walls including a wall having a surface defining a plurality of longitudinally extending contact wire positions including an outermost contact wire position. A stop projecting into the receptacle from the surface of said wall is in longitudinal alignment with the outermost contact wire position. An RJ-45 plug is thus fully insertable into the receptacle, the stop entering the outermost contact pin groove of the RJ-45 plug during insertion. However, full insertion of an RJ-11 plug is prevented by the stop.